Safety, Traffic, Parking and Schools -January 20th at 7 p.m.

Dear Edgewood Community,

As you may know, there have been many traffic-related issues that have disturbed our community since the beginning of this school year. We recently met to discuss how we can all work as a community to solve these problems.

Inspired Teaching School is deeply troubled by these issues, and has directly intervened in a number of ways. The following is a list of tactics, each attempted many times since August 2015:

·         

      Announcements and discussions on the school listserve

·         Weekly reminders in the Head of School Newsletter and Principal Newsletters

·         A lengthy lecture regarding traffic DOs and DONTs at Back to School Night

·         Calls to police station to request a presence in the mornings

·         Requests/petitions for a crossing guard

·         More staff and parent volunteers working to support the morning drop-off process

·         Placement of orange traffic cones to direct traffic flow

·         A parent-led initiative for a Traffic Calming Application to the city for our street

·         Increased coordination with Lee Montessori regarding their families

·         The school issued “tickets” to offenders

Collectively, we believe that all stakeholders must have an opportunity to be heard, and the various District agencies that may be able to help must be able to see a unified request for resources and support. That is why we have agreed to a joint meeting to further discuss potential resolutions, to take place on Wednesday, January 20, 2016 (7pm) – hosted at Inspired Teaching School. We are working to ensure the participation of many District agencies, including: MPD, WMATA, PCSB, DDOT, the Mayor’s office, Councilman McDuffie’s office, and more.

We are inviting all neighbors, school families, and community members to attend this meeting and help us work toward a solution. The school and the community have very similar interests as far as traffic flow and safe neighborhood conditions are concerned, and we look forward to collaboratively problem-solving this issue with the public and the government agencies who may find ways to support us.

Thank you so much for your patience and your support as we attempt to make our neighborhood safer and less congested for the benefit of everyone. Please know that we have been aware of the traffic issues, and have been working tirelessly to address them. We care about our community, and we are committed to making it better. Hope to see you on January 20^th at 7pm!

Best,

Sally Hobaugh, ANC 5E10

Inspired Teaching School Staff

P.S. The school has opened an avenue for public feedback regarding neighborhood concerns. All correspondence can be directed to community@inspiredteachingschool.org, or (202)248-6825

Come out and learn about what ward 5 schools have to OFFER!

The time is almost here for our first annual Meet and Greet the Principals of Ward 5.  We are very excited to present this opportunity to the community.  If you are interested in learning more about the educational opportunities in the community please come to Lamond Riggs Library tomorrow night for a great event!

Don't forget to RSVP at: W5COE.ORG/JULY2015EVENT

DC School Applications

Deadlines to apply:

• February 2, 2015: Grades 9-12
• March 2, 2015: Grades PK3-8

Get your SY15-16 My School DC School Directories today!
Don’t delay! Submit your request today for SY15-16 My School DC School Directories HERE. It’s free! Directories are available in English and Spanish and contain school profiles for each school participating in the lottery.

Please contact Aryan Bocquet, Parent Engagement Manager, with any questions at (202) 727-9306 or Aryan.Bocquet@dc.gov.

Check out our new School Finder tool
Families can now search for schools by address, grade or program type. Families can also find their new DCPS in-boundary schools with this tool. Check out the School Finder HERE. Families can email and print their search when complete. The School Finder is available in English and Spanish.

Application assistance available!
We are here to support families through the application process. Families can connect with a My School DC representative for application assistance in the following ways:

• My School DC Hotline: The Hotline is open Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. Staff is on hand to answer questions and help families apply. We are able to assist callers in multiple languages through bilingual staff and telephonic interpreters. Call us at (202) 888-6336. You can also email us at info@myschooldc.org.
• In-person assistance at our Ward 7 Field Office: Visit us at 4025 Minnesota Ave NE Mondays and Thursdays from 5-8PM for application workshops or walk in Monday-Friday. We’re available from 11AM-8PM!
• In-person assistance at our Columbia Heights satellite office: Visit us at CentroNía located at 1420 Columbia Rd NW on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 6:30-9:30PM for 1x1 application assistance. Spanish language assistance available!
• Check out our Calendar of Events for additional locations where you can find My School DC throughout the city for application assistance, including neighborhood libraries and rec centers!

Outreach materials in multiple languages
Download our fact sheets and worksheet HERE to help your families navigate the My School DC application process. All are available in English, Spanish, Amharic, Chinese, Vietnamese, and French.

• Who Should Apply: This fact sheet explains who needs to submit a My School DC application and who does not.
• What You Need to Apply: This fact sheet contains important information about what is needed to begin and complete the My School DC application process.
• Select Your School Worksheet: Families can apply to up to 12 schools on the My School DC application. They will first select their schools and then rank them in their preferred order. The Select Your Schools worksheet helps families organize priorities as they choose schools and helps maintain a list of their preferred schools, in order.

New Schools COMING

Looks like we will be getting new schools to fill the old Shaed School Building.  These schools are planing to open for the 2014-15 school year.  I know this will make lot of new parents in the neighborhood very happy.  

http://mayor.dc.gov/release/shaed-elementary-school-awarded-public-charter-schools-and-two-additional-school-buildings

Ward 5 Great Schools Initiative, September 29th

Ward 5 Great Schools Initiative:

Building Tomorrow Together

DCPS cordially invites all Ward 5 parents, families, staff and community members to join the conversation about middle school and other education initiatives. Share your vision for Ward 5 schools and work with us to expand educational opportunities in your neighborhood schools.

Thursday, September 29th

5:30-7:30

Luke Moore HS Cafeteria

1001 Monroe St. NE

To help us plan childcare and food services,

please RSVP Marie Woodward-Graves at (202) 719-6601

Schools in Edgewood

Since I published the post about the volunteering at DCPS I have been thinking about the number of schools in the Edgewood neighborhood of DC. I decided to post a list of the ones that I can find here and please feel free to let me know if I missed any. I did find it interesting that we have 2 (okay only part of one) colleges in Edgewood, but only one DCPS school. That said I know that we are close to many other schools in different neighborhoods.

Colleges

Trinity University

Catholic University

DCPS

Shaed Elementary

Charter Schools/ Private Schools

Good Community Public Charter School

DC Prep

Calvary Christian Academy

Volunteering in Edgewood

Here is an email I received that I am passing along as a great opportunity to help our local public school (I believe Shaed Elementary is the only DCPS in Edgewood) and meet some of your neighbors.

SAVE THE DATE!

District of Columbia Public Schools
Annual Beautification Day

Saturday, August 21, 2010
8 a.m.- 1 p.m.

Volunteers are needed to beautify our schools!

Help us paint doors, plant flowers and pick up trash before the first day of school.
Online registration for volunteers begins June 21st at www.dcps.dc.gov

DCPS Beautification Day was established in 2005 as the official day for a city-wide "spruce up" of all DC public school buildings and grounds in preparation for the opening of schools

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To reply to this e-newsletter, send an email to Shereen Williams at shereen.williams@dc.gov

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District of Columbia Public Schools
Office of Family and Public Engagement
1200 First Street NE, 12th floor
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 442-5885